Chris Jans evaluates why Mississippi State has struggled to close out games

Since beating in-state rival Ole Miss on Jan. 7, Mississippi State has gone 0-4. The average margin of loss during the stretch is 6.75 points and the worst margin was just 11 points to a Top 10 Tennessee team.

For head coach Chris Jans, the inability for Mississippi State to pull out wins in tight games is confounding. It’s also something he and staff are working hard to correct.

“I was just talking about that with a couple of the — a couple my colleagues up there. That’s a really good question. And I hate this answer but it’s true: You know, if I knew the quick fix I would’ve done it already. I’m not sure why. And certainly that’s my job to know that,” Jans said. “We’re deep diving, looking at everything that’s offered to us from an analytical standpoint. From trying to get feedback from everyone on our staff and get their thoughts, like we always do on a lot of different subject matters.”

Jans explained that what’s worked in the past is a team that’s really well-oiled and plays well together. The solution is a bit of an x-factor that hards to pin down — hence, the problem persists — but it really comes down to scoring and getting stops in the final moments.

“But, not used to that,” Jans said of lacking a winning-time edge. “I’m used to having a pretty tough-minded team and a team that is cohesive and together. Not saying we’re not, but those are the things, the ingredients that are required to win down the stretch. To have that mental toughness. To have that confidence. To stick together. And just make some timely shots and get some timely stops.

“And I know why you asked the question, because we’ve had a lot of games where we weren’t able to do that in games that came down to the last few minutes of the game.”